Week 35 - It's all about Neha!

Neha has always been sad that she never got a chance.. This week was all about her (atleast, mostly about her). But don't worry, our blog will have Dev and Sona moments as well. 😄❤️

I have often been interested in comparing Neha-Ranveer's relationship with Dev-Sona's. And this week was a perfect contrast between the two couple. The main striking difference between them is that one is based on "desires and expectations" and the other is "just love and nothing else".

Long ago, when Ranveer refused to take up the job offer given by Dev, we saw how Neha and Ranveer almost broke up. On that same day, Dev and Sona also had a difference of opinion on that topic. Sonakshi was upset that Dev gave more importance to the economical status of a person than his character and personality.. I am sure you all remember the night when it was pouring rain and Dev waited for hours to clarify his position to Sonakshi.

That night, 2 important decisions were made by the 2 couple. Dev declared to Sona that he is like that - a difficult person to deal with and asked her if she was willing to accept him just like that. On the other hand, Ranveer mended his ways.. and changed for Neha's sake.. and took up that job. On one hand, Sonakshi told Dev that she was absolutely willing to accept him the way he was and that she just needed his company. Neha, on the other hand, accepted Ranveer because he accepted that job. There is one thing that we all know - when there are expectations, be prepared for disappointments as well.

Since Dev and Sonakshi's bond was made only with love, they were able to withstand all storms and ended up happy. Neha and Ranveer's bond was not made with love... Ranveer probably thought accepting that job offer was all that Neha expected of him... Neha herself might have thought that she will be happy with Ranveer with this new job. "Material needs have no limits" is probably the lesson that Neha has to learn. Ranveer should probably learn to embrace Neha with so much love that her love for material needs vanishes from her sight completely and forever.

Having said that, I cannot but feel extremely bad and sad for Neha.  Tears came rolling down, hearing the flash back that Ishwari told about Neha. The year that Dev started going to a better school was the year that Neha had to give up her schooling completely and almost became a mother to the two younger sisters.. She had to give up her opportunity in life, to Dev.. so that one day, he can grow up and earn more and take care of all of them.

It was endearing to watch little Neha take care of her big brother Dev and little Dev trying to help Neha learn...The 2 innocent kids thought they have a lot of time to learn and grow. That was an excellent scene conceived by the makers 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

Dev definitely did all his duties as a brother...There is no doubt about that. And he is definitely sad now that Neha is undergoing this right now...As Sonakshi later said, everyone makes mistakes and this was a mistake on their part to have overlooked Neha's current state in planning for their honeymoon. If this was the reason Ishwari fainted and was upset with Dev, then I am with her. However, apart from this, Dev's "15 days away from home and mom" is also bothering her equally or more...😞

Whatever be it, the much awaited honeymoon was cancelled. The story, dialogues and emotions are in the realistic zone always, even amidst highly demanding emotional sequences. One example was Dev's expression of helplessness through anger and Sonakshi's compassion towards Dev as he was struggling to find a shoulder to lean on. I was reminded of the time, when Neha was given away in marriage and Dev was fighting to hide his feelings. Then and now, Shaheer is just excellent as Dev 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 This particular scene was very well made. Three cheers to the makers and actors! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

Again, I want to reiterate - because, Dev and Sonakshi have "love" that is binding them together, all of this was not a big deal for them. They continue to love each other the same way or even more. While Sonakshi cares about Dev's every  pain and every sorrow, Dev also cares the same about Sona. I particularly loved the subtle way he acknowledged Mami's hurtful talks and asked Sona to rejoin work and to be away from such stress at home ❤️ and to especially not become like her idol Keechu bhaiya (part 2) 😂😂

It was a treat to watch our "old-songs lover" Shaheer who slowly peeked out of Dev...😄❤️ But did Sona just say that it doesn't suit him? Ofcourse, it does!! Dev, everything suits you! Go ahead and live your life. You have been through your share of harder times as well, in your childhood.. And now is the time for you to live and experience happiness!!  The TV screen never fails to brighten whenever the lead pair come together onscreen. Even when they fight onscreen, our heart might feel sad, but our eyes always become 😍😍.

As time went by, Sonakshi slowly seemed to get into the Dixit family, like water in a bowl of flour. It was a wonderful comparison of how people are bound together in a family, just like making the dough using atta flour 😄 Well, its got to be good! Mother-in-law Ishwari Dixit was herself impressed!! 

The reality struck one more time to Ishwari. Mama ji's sensible talk was another highlight of this week. He made Ishwari realize and even express that she is scared of Sonakshi being so good that in her company, Dev may one day, even forget his responsibilities towards his sisters..Dev and Sona are not like that and will never have such intentions and only time can prove this to Ishwari.

Time does heal many wounds, especially in matters of Love. But, Neha's hatred for Ranveer and middle-class life was only increasing day by day. Comparison of husband to brother or father, and comparison of wife to any other woman is a definite bummer in arguments between a couple. Ranveer and Neha just did that 😬😬 Now, this fight that is going on is definitely ego. Honestly, I feel Ishwari and maami are only adding fuel to it. Maami is deliberately doing it. But Ishwari, due to her own insecurities is reiterating Dev's duties (highlighting the terms of the prenup!!) every now and then!! And with such energy around, Neha cannot think calmly, can she?? 😞 Towards the end of the week it came till Divorce request.

The makers have always made sure to weave the right flashback at appropriate times. Neha's emotional and psychological state came through vividly when she explained what happened to her as a child and what was happening to her now. Ishwari had always controlled the flow of Neha's life and especially her thoughts - a small ribbon in place of a new shirt for her brother Dev made Neha happy as a child, only because her mother asked her to be so. But Neha is grown up now and cannot be fooled by what Ishwari wants...Neha made Ishwari realize that bad times surely took away a part of Neha's childhood, but Ishwari had a very big part in taking away all the opportunities that Neha ever had in her life.

Nobody in the Dixit house can think for her from her angle, is Neha's conclusion. Things will turn around for her if this is proven wrong. Will Ranveer or Dev or Sonakshi be able to prove this to her? We have to wait and watch as the beautiful story unfolds next festival week 😊

Week 34 - To Love and Be Loved

They say we should never go to bed with an unfinished argument.. Our Dev and Sona even made those rules for themselves. But never were able to follow it even after more than a week into marriage.

I have always wondered about why its so hard to be in Sync after marriage. Mine is also an inter-community love marriage like theirs. And after many years of arguing and fighting and making up in repeat mode, I have been able to come to a logical reason behind it. Prior to getting into the marriage, its always about demonstrating "who loves more" and therefore there are many gift exchanges and nice romantic talks, etc.However, after marriage, its all about "who is loved more"! There is a lot of expectation and there is a constant need to surprise the other person and even if one tries his/her best, it never seems sufficient enough. There is always room for mistakes and misunderstandings.. With a 3rd person constantly around, the situation is more demanding.

Ishwari is the 3rd person I am referring here and probably Dev will fight with me for saying so and will tell me that I was not there to witness the difficult times he and his mom went through.. I know that Ishwari is a good soul and that she loves her son with all her heart. However, between a husband and wife, even a mother becomes a third person. Not that she is not loved or not that she doesn't have a say in anything. But a couple need their privacy, for many things, apart from sex.

Coming to Dev and Sona's fight itself - I felt Dev went a little overboard with his choice of words like "hume har bare mein baat karne ki zaroorat nahi hai.. Mein 'apne' bhaayi ko 'apne' office mein ek job di"... in contrast to Sonakshi's genuine advice of "Vicky has to become a good person and that opportunity was taken away by giving him everything without effort". Having said that, I also felt Sonakshi should give Dev his space... its only a week into their marriage and she has to get in slowly into everyone's heart..After all, this marriage has happened amidst hatred from Ishwari, Maami and Sona knows their personality...

When a fight like this happens, the effect lingers even after they resolve the problem for which it all started in the first place! One might say that its the ego of the couple thats stopping them from getting over the misunderstanding. But for me, "ego" is a very negative term.. I feel its not as bad as that. If that day, one of them fell sick, I am sure that the other person will be willing to even give their life in return for a healthier, happier spouse. Its not "ego" thats stopping them from making up. Its the need to be "loved more".. If she loves me that much, let her come and talk to me..If he loves me that much, let him come and talk to me...So, the night, the morning, the afternoon, the evening went by waiting for the other person to take that first step.

Even after many many years of marriage, I feel that hesitation to take the first step might always be there because even after we become very very old, we will have the need to be loved more.

While the couple themselves are trying figure out their own space, Ishwari was almost strangling their neck by involving herself in things she doesn't have to.. It was obvious that Sona was trying to do something special for her husband that night in the dinner table. I am sure, Ishwari knows the purpose of the candles on the dinner table . There was absolutely no need to stop Sonakshi from making Dev's dinner special and send her upstairs to sleep. And it was such an ugly lie when she told Dev that Sona was sleepy, so she went up to sleep..

When a couple allows a 3rd person to decide the reason for their fights, its going to be difficult to find peace. However, its a learning curve where we learn the Do's and Dont's... and thats how we grow in marriage..A marriage that lasts long amidst all this, becomes a special one. Thats why, its such a pride to have a long happy married life.

Even though it was hard to see the cute couple fight, I had my heart set on them, because I could see myself there arguing with my husband 
Sona-"Are you saying its my mistake!" 
Dev-"I didnt start anything..i am just agreeing to whatever you are saying" 
Sona-"Dev!!"
Dev-"What??"
Sona-"Ok fine. I don't want to talk. I will go"
Dev-'Ok fine. Go!"
Am pretty sure, this is how most of the fights go on in every household!! Well done guys 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

The following morning scene was very beautifully conceived and so full of emotions.. And perfectly done by the lead pair. I am usually more biased to Dev, because I just adore him. In this scene I have to give it to both for so rightly capturing that feeling of "I cant let you go.. I love you with all my heart..and I miss you so badly..." When a similar disagreement came prior to marriage over Ranveer's acceptance of the job offer, they were able to agree to disagree.. It was quite easy then, because there was a not an Ishwari standing in between them!

If they had just a few more seconds to express, I am sure that scene would have ended differently. Its not ego thats stopping them, and one will do anything if the other is in trouble..There he came, running to his Sonakshi before she could set her eyes on that report and hurt herself. The cute moments that followed, was a well deserved treat for the fans after sustaining more than half a week of heart ache 💕💞💖

On the day of Dussera, I think Dev did the right thing by keeping his mother also happy. Ofcourse, he over ate and he might end up having a tummy ache later. But, I think he did the right thing. And I felt Sona was really pushing him that night about his mom, and not giving him any space at all.. I particularly liked the "data transfer" comparison. As much as we find Ishwari's presence between the couple, annoying... its also true that Dev and Ishwari share a unique bond, much more stronger than a normal mother-son. And I loved how Dev felt it was his responsibility to tell Ishwari that he was eating out that night, but he forgot. Thats the strength of Dev - to love every member of his family with all his heart and to go above and beyond to keep them happy and content. Its going to be interesting to see him keep the new addition Sonakshi also happy and content.

But on a jovial note, is this how people put on some extra weight, post marriage? over eating?? 😲😂 
Talking about eating, I am also noticing that every single time, Ishwari only feeds Dev and makes it a point to not serve for Sona 😲. Either Sona serves for herself or Bhola serves for her.. 

Its probably more than 10 days since their wedding and the couple weren't able to consummate their marriage due to family traditions on one side and Ishwari's surveillance on the other! Finally, one of the sisters took that bold step of booking the resort (that Sona had already bookmarked!) for the couple. On her own accord, Sonakshi wouldn't have thought of lying to Ishwari and going away for the night. But when the situation was created for her by someone, it was quite natural to go with the flow! Especially, given the distractions they have been having at home. Sometimes, a 3rd person's intervention helps!!

In a welcoming change on TV (and movies too), the lady took the first step of bringing her man to the dream world and surprise him!! 

This was probably the first time, someone has ever surprised Dev like this..with so much love for him in her eyes... I was remembering that scene after the initial proposal when he told Sonakshi that he wants to keep her for himself.. as he has never before desired for anything other than her for himself.. It was natural that he had a feeling of pride over his possession, Sonakshi.

Its probably very rare to see a girl compliment a guy for being handsome. It was so cute when Sonakshi complimented his looks and his already glowing eyes just brightened up more!! An unusually casual Dev Dixit was really looking handsome..Well, considering that Sonakshi packed the luggage, this was not a big surprise to me!

Apart from his looks, Shaheer's eyes are his asset 😍😍 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Have I been telling this week after week? They emote so well and bring out the essence of the scene in just one deep look. Well, I say, he should insure his eyes.

The Resort was beautiful just like the couple! Very romantic place, perfect for 2 beautiful people totally in love with each other.. There was just the right dose of romance to show their intimacy - it was like a poem, a soft music, that took us gently into their world and kept lingering in our mind until long after the show was over...

Back home, Ishwari was anxious that her son was not home yet, angry that Sonakshi had probably tricked her this time in getting away with Dev, and embarrassed when she called the Bose house... She is bottling up all the things in her mind now. I don't know when and how its going to burst out!! We should pause and appreciate the actress Supriya, who plays the role of Ishwari. She manages to show all her emotions in her face with zero dialogue!! 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

I loved how the makers underplayed the drama of Dev and Sonakshi's lie to mama's house.. I was very much worried what will happen when Ishwari finds out..In any other TV serial, this plot would have been shown for more than a week with the women conspiring and the bahu being blamed, etc. One more round of 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 for the makers.

As we came to the end of the week, it was good to see the newer, more confident Sonakshi, who was ready with her answers to Ishwari, over waiting for her husband Dev, that night for dinner. And Dev's happy union with his wife for dinner was heartwarming to see, inspite of Ishwari's growing discomfort. 

Ishwari should really be proud of her son, who genuinely makes it a point to spend some time with her, acknowledging the fact that she needs him as well. He was right there for her..taking care of her physical and emotional needs.. And yet, it was just not enough for the insecure mother and she wants to put the pressure of her hopes and wishes on her very devoted son... 

As Dev and Sona's relationship grows stronger and more intimate, its hard not to think of Neha who has just come back to her mom's side with a failed marriage. Neha is not ready to talk to anyone and is totally rude and insensitive, especially to Sonakshi who constantly attempts to talk to her. Until she is ready to talk, its hard to reach out to her.

If Neha's love for Ranveer and his love for her is strong enough, then this distance is definitely temporary. Because, there is only one happiness in life - To love and be loved. 

Atleast for Dev and Sonakshi, things are starting to fall in the groove, I hope.

Week 33 - And the heat continues

Dev is a businessman by profession. A very passionate lover of Sonakshi. He understands her more than he understands himself..just as he wanted it to be. He worships his mother and is emotionally bound by her love. He let her control him for the last 28 years. And he still continues to, for most part. Probably because of his childhood, he was living a very mechanical life for all these years and he never experienced the many emotions that men of his age would have experienced. So every phase of his life is a discovery for himself - especially his love for Sonakshi. Whether it was expressing it or breaking it or later mending it, he always lived in that moment and reacted for that moment.  This phase of being a husband is also a discovery.. Even though the role of son is a very well known role to him, he is having a tough time in keeping up his new role as a husband while still maintaining his old balance as a son.

Sonakshi is a Nutritionist by profession. A strong, independent woman, by nature. A caring loving wife who loves her husband Dev and looks out for his every need and mood. A good person by heart who thinks logically and puts forth her opinions assertively.  She has a lot of respect for Ishwari as a woman and a lot of regard for her as her mother in law. She was never attracted to Dev because of his wealth and is not such a person who will ever fall prey to material temptations. Sonakshi's weakness, if we must find one, is her assertiveness, which can be very easily misinterpreted for ego and arrogance. She married Dev with many dreams, just like any woman. But she is facing lot of problems in living her dreams in the Dixit home.

Ishwari is a very strong woman by nature. She independently brought up her 4 kids after the demise of her husband. She smartly invested all her energy on her first son Dev with a hope that when he grows up, he will make their life better. Dev did not disappoint her at all and grew up the way she wanted him to be. Dev's new found love, Sonakshi has been disturbing her peace ever since she knew about it. She was temporarily able to get Sona away from her son, but had to give in, as his son's happiness depended on Sonakshi. She has given Sonakshi, a place in her house, not in her heart and is still trying to keep her away from Dev and all the family matters.

I am revisiting these characters, because this week was all about these colors of the three central characters. And we reached the pivotal point of the plot, which was Dev being stuck between the love for his mother and the love for his wife.

When Dev knew about the Navarathri vrth, he was so agitated that he did not wait to even hear what Sonakshi had to say. He assumed that his mother would have forced it on Sona. Although, I still feel Ishwari did have role in it, I don't mind giving the benefit of doubt to her this time. Yes, she did not deliberately force Sonakshi. And therefore, she was offended by Dev's enquiry. Her tone was so weird that Dev was taken aback. I loved his clueless face! Well played as usual Shah! 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽 Sonakshi is pretty much walking on a tight rope. And the sudden storm shook her a bit..Whatever little goodwill she earned in the last 3 days with Ishwari seemed to have suddenly been destroyed.

I really liked how Dev clarified that he was not upset that they have to stay away for 9 more days..but rather he was upset that Sonakshi took the decision all by herself without involving him. But see.. Sonakshi really did not expect this herself until Ishwari mentioned it at the end. It would be a little embarrassing for her to take back her word, just because Ishwari asked the couple to stay away..It was probably a lesson for Sonakshi to not let herself get carried away by the pooja, vrth, etc.

I have started analyzing every move of Ishwari that I thought probably she sending Sona to her mom's house had some motive... but it didnt seem so...probably a genuine gesture..

And I don't want to talk about the harshness that the Bose house Ishwari shows towards Dev. Come on, Bijoy. You must have known him the day he defended Sona in the matter about prenup. Why do you still have that long face! Well.. time has to show you, I guess.

In my home, when we have a misunderstanding, and its my husband's fault (as it ALWAYS is!!), he just comes around doing unusually sweet things until I give in and smile. When Dev said "what do I do.. to make you accept my sorry", I could see me and my husband right there! This show is realistic and there is absolutely no 2 opinions about that 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

Who is Neha?  Neha is a girl who had lost her childhood, just like Dev. But because of the opportunities that Dev got, he became a successful businessman. Because of the opportunities she lost, Neha grew up to be that woman who lacked self confidence and who was completely dependent on her brother for everything. Dev made Neha's life beautiful by giving her all the comforts of life.. the comforts that she lost as a child. Ranveer, with his love, brought that confidence back in Neha and made her a happier person. Although Neha agreed to marry him, she did not accept him with all her heart and made a big deal in her mind, of the compromises she was making. Although she said that she was trying hard to accept him the way he was, in reality she always looked at his lack of motivation to become rich as his weakness. Ranveer on the other hand, even though he knew that Neha came from a rich background, failed to understand that her weakness was her need for material comforts and compelled her to be a wife that she can never be. Because their marriage was based on expectations, we all knew their marriage was going to be over sooner or later. And there it was - this week Neha came back to her brother's nest in her pursuit of comfortable living.

When Neha came home, Dev was furious and Ishwari was devastated. Sonakshi, being the person that is not a blood relation, was able to think with a cool head. It doesn't mean she didnt care for Neha.. I did not find anything wrong in her request to let the matter cool down a bit.. Ishwari said only "our own" people can feel the pain of Neha. But thats the beauty of a woman when she becomes someone's wife, right? Even though she doesn't have any blood relation, she still cares for the family members as if they are her own...Ishwari is a woman and a wife as well.. I really wonder why she is unable to see the woman inside Sonakshi who is just like her? Well, time will have to tell us. But until then, we have no other choice but to go through Saas Bahu drama.😉😉

Who is Vicky? Vicky is a rowdy. He is a thief. He disrespects women, especially Dev's wife Mrs.Sonakshi Dixit. He has not studied anything worth while. He spends or rather wastes his day by stalking girls on social media, hiding his identity and following them. He drinks and parties with wrong company. He is someone, who is incorrectly led by a money-minded and selfish mother. And he is also Dev's mama's son. He is Ishwari's dear and respected brother's son. And none of this is hidden from anybody. Dev knows about it. As well as Ishwari, well..atleast that he is a rowdy..

When the discussion about Vicky's job in "Ishwari communications" came up, Dev had to agree, because he knew that he was indebted to his mama.

Sonakshi, the person with "non-manipulative" brain, gave a right suggestion that Vicky should join as a trainee, just like Ria and grow from there. And Dev who rightly respects his good wife, agrees to that suggestion to start him off as a trainee.

Inspite of knowing Vicky's shortcomings, I fail to understand why Ishwari compelled Dev to give a management role to him. I fail even more, to understand why Dev has to give in for that. If payback for the good hearted mama is the intention, Dev should really payback by building a nice comfortable luxury villas for maama and family and send them there..and even make arrangements for a monthly income..Dont you agree? 😉😉😁

But on a serious note, payback for maama will really happen when Vicky is reformed into a good human being. I really hope that Dev (with the help of Sona) one day achieves that. But right now, it seems as if Dev put a chameleon going on the side walk in his own pocket on purpose! 😲 😡

Once upon a time, when Dr.Bose was Ishwari's good nutritionist, Maami used to daunt her by saying she is an outsider and should not do this and do that. But every time, Ishwari used to tell maami that she is not an outsider and that she is a part of the Dixit family. Ishwari even was willing to take Sona's opinion on Dev-Natasha marriage! Now Sonakshi is really a part of the family..yet Ishwari considers her an outsider? And does not want to discuss Neha's issue with her? Why? What kind of love for her son made Sonakshi an outsider for her?

Once upon a time, when Sonakshi was Dev's good friend, she had asked him to stay away from sleeping pills. And he promptly listened to her. However, at one point of time, he felt very stressed and couldn't sleep. He called Dr.Bose to ask whether it was ok to have it just for that night. He called her to ask her opinion about such a trivial thing.. He has taken Sona's advice on very many situations..even Neha's wedding with Ranveer, And now, he doesn't feel he might get help from Sonakshi? He feels Sonakshi's silence is a better help? But why? What kind of love for his mother or for his mama has made him feel that Sona's help is not needed at all?

The Friday's episode was very disheartening and I felt numb for a long time after the show was over. It was as if I had a terrible fight with my husband. It was very realistic and that day, I read a lot of fans on social media saying the same thing! So this is for the whole team 👏🏽👏🏽👏🏽

One of the main goals this week for Ishwari was to regain her title - that she thought she lost?? Who will tell her that she never lost anything and she is not competing with Sonakshi! Somehow, when Dev agreed to give a managerial role to Vicky, Ishwari seemed happy to have regained what she lost??

Week 32 - Its all a mess!

Imagine you were playing a nice board game and your team was right there..winning.. and just suddenly someone came and messed the game up and you were so clueless as to what just happened! It was almost like that for Dev and Sona that wedding night. So much discomfort over fish, veg/non-veg, saree, lehenga, mehendi and what not! Inspite of such a big event that just happened in their life, such an event for which they were longing for..such an event for which they had to die and be reborn..it seemed so....unfulfilling.

Amidst the storm, fresh air came in the form of a caring Dev. I had been admiring Dev's temperament since last week and it was heartwarming to see him chill and get Sonakshi back in mood. Ms.Bose is now Mrs.Dixit - Mrs.Sonakshi Dixit! And what can be more fulfilling than this. In a moment, Dev was able to get Sonakshi and us forget all the discomfort we had been experiencing over the last week :)

If only that was the end of confusions, it would have been nice... The confusions continued in the form of Dadi bhua's uncompromising need for home food & Ishwari's resolve to cook in addition to the hunger strike that the Dixit elders had been doing the whole time during the wedding. Although it sounds ridiculous that the newly weds will actually spend arguing about these things.. its only reality!  I felt sad for them, especially Dev who was genuinely only trying to make Sona and her family feel good about everything..

Thus ended the most awaited Day 1 - together yet apart!

Day 2 started off with one of the cutest notes ever! Remember the time when Sona was all over Dev and Dev hardly had any idea about it? And one morning, Sona dreamt of Dev next to her.. It was exactly that dream come true on Day 2. However angry a wife is, she is sure to melt and forgive, when a husband so sweetly wakes her up..I am sure, all married women across the world will agree with me :)

As they both got lost in their world, this time, Ria had to knock the door.

All members of the Dixit house have a very bad habit of disturbing the couple when they are busy doing something important! Anyway.. the moment was gone :( Sona had to get ready to go down to "show her face" (LITERALLY!) to everyone in the family. Thats the ritual. Dadi and Maami sharpened their tongue enough to bring those tears from Sona's eyes! But, Sona is now Mrs.Dev Dixit. The proud husband promptly protected his dear wife. Actually, I must say both Sona and Dev were on a mission that day to keep their chin up and stay happy! Gareeb ki beti got nicely from Mrs.Sonakshi Dixit. I felt great about it..How about you all?

However, the return of the car by Saurabh Bose messed it up for the couple. Well, Saurabh was right, Sonakshi was right, and Dev was also not wrong. But the situation became stressful.. Sometimes, when there is a misunderstanding walking away for a while is better than arguing.. sometimes, arguing is much better.. Either ways, these misunderstandings are not that bad, because after a while, we get to see the cute make ups.. The make up was so very real.. I am absolutely sure that all married people, would have sometime or the other made those day time and night time make-up rules :)

But as Dev and Sona were making these rules for themselves, I think Ishwari's brain was working day and night in moving her coins forward... Ufff... What can I say, its even easier to manage a mother-in-law who fights it on your face.. Its so hard to predict Ishwari! But the fact is, such Ishwaris do exist.  After watching all the episodes for the week, I have started to believe that she has been really manipulating every single move of hers as she quietly retires to her room to her bed. I have started to see her as a witch now :( Sorry, Dev - I know you love your mom, but she can be better than this.

The Tulsi pooja and her asking Sonakshi to sleep in Nikki's room, was, I must say, very very creepy.

I really miss Kichu bhaiya.. If he was there, he would have definitely protected Sona and stopped her from wearing that chappal near Tulsi plant...This Bhola bhaiya doesn't know anything..:(

Thus ended Day 2 alone...

Day 3 again started off on a romantic note of "How you doing, baby girl!" and a passionate and romantic breakfast together! I cant understand why a mother in law should be upset over a son who wants to be romantic to his wife. Why does she feel insecure about it? Why does she have to feel possessive about it? I am not in Ishwari's generation and luckily did not have to go through any of this in my life, so I  fail to understand. But I have friends who have told me stories about their possessive mother in laws, so I know they exist. It was extremely frustrating to see her behave like that with Sonakshi...

Yes, Sonakshi is also now called "Mrs.Dixit"..but that doesn't mean that Ishwari is not "Mrs.Dixit" anymore. Ishwari must be tired to have taken care of her family all these years..Why is she not happy to have someone come and support her with the title Mrs.Dixit?

But all this headache is only for us now. Dev is in his dream world of his special night with Sonakshi. Sona was in her peak of happiness as she was enjoying the love she got to experience from Dev. And, we got to see some nice phone conversation and dreamy sequences..

Dev and Sona's special night dream was short lived, because Ishwari's master plan was in place and Dadi Bhua was on her way to Rishikesh with Dev that night.  We were all waiting for dadi bhua to leave and I am happy she left.. but I thought she will take a train... Why car??!!  Why Dev?

Thus Day 3 ended with Dev and Sona spending their night talking on a phone (and promoting the new Sony show!).

I think Ishwari was quite tired of making plans for every single night... that she made a bulk plan to keep Sonakshi away from her son for 9 straight nights in the name of Navarathri.

Ishwari has gauged Sonakshi really well. I think the first kitchen, tulsi pooja were all tests for her to see how far was Sona willing to go, to adapt herself to the Dixit home. She knew that as soon as she gives her the idea of Navarathri fasting, Sona was going to take up the challenge!

Even though Sonakshi knew that its going to be hard to face Dev with this decision of hers, she believed that she will be able to convince him..For her, it was very important to become the 'perfect bahu". One was her need to impress and get into the good books of Ishwari - because Ishwari was very important for Dev. The second reason, which is pretty much a trait with Indian women (and men also) is that whatever we do, we strive to be the best..probably because of our upbringing.. It didnt surprise me that Sona took up that challenge.

This week, was all about subtleness. I haven't spoken yet about the actors' performance.. The longing that Dev showed time and again every single night was bang on. We could feel it, as he said "Miss me.." before he left that night to drop dadi. We have seen many romantic sequences between Dev and Sona and by now, their chemistry is well known. But the way they both showed their togetherness amidst all the misunderstandings and issues was quite appealing to me - The characterization as well as the acting was very real. The realistic zone in which the show is kept is quite impressive. Although Ishwari gets on my nerves, Supriya, the actor behind Ishwari, has portrayed her part really well and has managed to get everyone's hatred (I mean it in a good way, the more hatred means she is doing very well!)

And the members of the Bose family weren't any less..They portrayed the emptyness of Sona's absense perfectly! Bijoy is the Ishwari of the Bose family..but atleast he talks openly. Sona was the strength of the Bose family..especially dada. Iam worried about him.

Although, it seems like a Saas bahu show for now, I am sure that the uniqueness of this show is its realistic portrayal of characters and the makers will definitely keep up that promise.

I get very sad seeing Dev and Sona struggling to have a normal life.. and to cheer myself up, I started watching the old episodes.. The ones in which Dev was already in Sona's heart.. During those days, Ishwari was so loving towards Sona. She herself praised Sona generously and always protected her from mami's ill words. Sona is the same girl.. why has Ishwari changed from the moment she knew that she has to share her son's love with Sona?

During this Durgashtami and Dushera, I just want to pause and talk about how every woman is a form of Durga. We are all individually strong and are capable of taking charge of literally anything in life. Our strengths are beyond words can describe and beyond human brains can even comprehend. Why does a woman become another woman's enemy? Shouldn't we support each other and protect the men, the family, that is so much dependent on us? I hope Ishwari will realize this soon..I hope Sonakshi remains the neutral person that she is and help Ishwari as well as maami understand that they are all part of the same team..the same family.

Happy Dushera everyone :)

Week 31: The Wedding

The week was full of Festivity 🌟💐🎈🎉 So much that even though we saw it through a small television screen, it was as though happening in our homes.. And rightly so, because Dev and Sonakshi have become a very important part of our everyday life over the last 150+ days! I personally had to reschedule a few appointments on friday, so that I don't miss the wedding 😁😄

The zone of reality that the makers are trying to set their story in, has once again proved very successful this week 👍🏻👍🏻

Before we go on to the Festive mode... there is one last thing to talk about. one last emotional battle that they have to fight..well, this time, its just Dev - alone without Sona's support.

I always wonder - if there is nothing that can be done about it, why do the doctors even tell us about it...😏😏 Ignorance is bliss, don't you agree? But then it is the duty of the doctors to tell what they found. For us, when we hear a medical diagnosis for the first time, its very tough - we never thought we will ever have it! And the difficulty doubles, if its actually a diagnosis for our loved one - reason, we cant even do anything about it!

For Dev, the difficulty is many folds. Sonakshi's "in-hospitable uterus" is not just a diagnosis, its a shattered dream about their tiny Sonakshi and tiny Abhodro. And its even more than that. Its a fear of losing Sonakshi once again.. Its such a touchy subject that its hard to predict how each of them will react if they come to know. I empathize with him.

I am really in awe of the sudden temperament change in Dev 😊 Whether its his interaction with Sona's parents or his interaction with even Sona..there is an honest calmness and a sincere tolerance of all thats new to him. In spite of all the storm in his head, he managed a very sweet conversation over phone with Sona, when he promised her for many beautiful memories in their life together.

With the confusion about the diagnosis in mind, Dev and us got ready for the Sangeet!

But Sonakshi is unaware of any of these. So, sky is the limit for her happiness..She was just unable to stop her smile and Dev was just having a hard time keeping his mind stress free and happy.. He cannot hide the language his eyes speak to Sona, can he?! He was not saying any lies when he told her that it was the fear of losing her...Well acted, Dev 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Eyes are your asset, Shaheer! Always protect those expressive eyes 😍😍 One more well executed scene by the team, especially Shaheer 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 At the end of the song, I really liked our show's version of the song, so much more than the actual movie version ❤️ The meaning of the song, suited so well for our Dev and his expressions were fantastic! The song that played during the night of DevkiDeewangi as well as this one suits our show perfectly!

I think Sonakshi described the event very aptly..as if they are in a border fighting with their troops! When two families from different cultures get into a relationship, its not easy at all! Especially in the matters pertaining to customs.. But what makes Dev and Sona one unique couple, is the way they understand each other.  Sona's strength is her mind that is able to understand and adapt to the different situations and Dev's strength is his heart which has the immense power of Love that can conquer everything ❤️

I was particularly reminded of the time during Neha's wedding, when Neha's wedding scarf was put on Sona's head by Nikki and how maami and Ishwari got wild. Acknowledging the fact that she was hurt and it wasn't even her mistake, Dev immediately went behind to pacify her..and spoke to her with so much of respect and love.. and similarly Sonakshi had always been very matured in handling these things. In any other TV show, one maami character will create so much of drama over every opportunity..and the heroine and hero will probably go through a turmoil of emotions every single time! Every house, sure has a power packed maami character, but she is powerless, if love is the language we speak! This show is all about love and thats what makes it special :)

Whatever happens around us, lets divert all our focus on Dev and Sonakshi and the love that got them this far!

What a beautiful road side romantic dance! They truly complete each other. It was a dance celebrating an important milestone....it was the last night in which they are just a boyfriend, girlfriend... Soon they are going to be husband and wife. Soon they will have to accept the love and craziness of both their families equally. When I look back and see the path they took to come here at this night..the one thing that stands out for me is the respect they have for each other without any ego. Although they both are individually quite strong headed, they have surely put all their ego aside and made Love as their language. And I sincerely hope that this be the case throughout their life.

In India, every state has unique customs and every caste has its own beliefs and inspite of so many differences, we are one and that makes our country unique! No other country in this world can have so much of unity inspite of the diversity we have. We can be proud of that. This is the larger picture.

However, zooming in to the families that have to embrace the differences - its not easy. A custom that is considered auspicious in a community may be considered inauspicious in another! For example, the "ulu-dhwani" sound that bengalis make, is an auspicious sound for them. However, in some parts of India, its a sound made in funerals! The fish is a very auspicious part of Bengali culture. However, for brahmins, fish or egg or for that matter even onion and garlic are considered non-sathwik food and is completely prohibited, and is even considered a sin to have such a food nearby the holy fire.

When a man and a woman from different communities fall in love and expect their parents to accept them and the partner they have chosen, they must also be prepared to go through these hardships. The worst thing is, when in Love, everything else dims out and therefore we may not even have analysed all these things.. Dev and Sona, am sure love each other to moon and back. Its important to keep that love in tact forever, because thats what is going to bind them together even when everything else goes against them.

It was DevAkshikiShaadi finally! And the social media was full of laughter, beautiful photo edits, videos, poems and what not. It almost felt like a wedding in our own homes. The makers made it such a grand affair! The set was huge, the actors were looking beautiful. It was truly awesome. I really loved the way the bride looked at the groom for the first time! It was such a sweet entry 😄❤️😍 And the garland exchange was very sweet and cute.. Just like the couple 😊 Other than that and a couple of other scenes, Dev and Sona were not even shown as much and I was extremely impressed with the makers for showing the reality.

In marriages like this or in any proper traditional marriage, its always the customs and rituals of the 2 families that are more important than even the bride and the groom. The focus was rightly kept on the specific Bengali traditions that differed from the traditions of the Dixit family...

Like the bride not wearing the Lehenga that the mother-in-law got for her. Asha's careful and honest reply to that was heartwarming. Truly, every community is different and beautiful :) 

Mehendi made from a plant is considered auspicious for a woman, especially during marriage in the Dixit family who follow the brahmin customs. That is replaced by Alta. I know that Mehendi is natural and I believe Alta is somewhat man made and considered artificial because although its made from an insect its later refined by adding some chemicals. Bengalis use Alta because its more bright red in color than Mehendi and resembles blood which is a symbol of fertility and prosperity. I don't mean to say that one is better than the other - I am just pointing out the difference so that we can respect both traditions.

Well..from the groom's side.. the disappointment is that this is the marriage of their only son and they are just an audience, unable to have any say on the rituals. From the bride's side, its a disappointment that even though they got to do things as per their own traditions, the family where their daughter is going to live forever is not happy and content and the environment seems so dull and unfulfilling.

But I must say, it was good to breeze through all these in just 1 day..Any other show would have dwelled on the Lehenga issue for 2 or 3 days and the Mehendi issue for 4 or 5 days.

For that matter, I would also like to give credits to the makers for keeping Neha's issues aside. Whenever I see Neha with that long sad face, I am very worried for her. Who doesn't need money in this world! Even a Tata and an Ambani need it to increase the number of cars they own from 500 to 501! And Neha is only asking for an air conditioner in her home or a refrigerator and whats wrong in that:( However, a contented heart perceives every little blessing as a mighty treasure - isn't it?  Well.. lets keep that part aside. From this wedding angle, Neha has a big role in her brother's wedding as per the brahmin tradition. She is the one that has to drape the bride's saree and she is the one that has to even tie the knot of the holy union of her brother and his wife. Its the "right" of the groom's sister. By missing this in her brother's wedding, she and Ishwari know fully well that she will never get an opportunity in her life to do this. But, I was very glad that they let it go with a smiling face :) Thats how it should be, when Love is more important than anything else.

I have already spoken a lot about Non vegetarian/Vegetarian food last week and I am not going to bore you all again with that! Its a big deal for the older generation, especially, to have the non vegetarian food around. When my parents come to visit me in this foreign land, I am staying in, I know how hard it is for me to search for a pure vegetarian restaurant!

Thank God for maama and Asha. Even though Mami and Dadi bhua sprinkled their color of grey...the color that popped out in the end was the color of love, red ❤️❤️❤️ The wedding was over without any big issue. The Goodbye was short and extremely emotional and did not fail to bring those tears from our eyes. When a daughter is wedded and given away, there surely is an emptiness in her family.. an emptiness that may never ever be filled and who knows this better than our own Dev! A warm caring touch is all she really needed and Dev was right there for her ❤️😊

Even though a big happy DevAkshi union happened this week, somehow there is an unexplainable sadness inspite of the swelling happiness... isn't it? And its not really because of maami or dadi or Bejoy..And its not really because of any intentionally planned/schemed drama... The last scene of the week, with the fish and the heartfelt apologies depicted exactly this emotion.. Nothing was intentional..Please let any of this not affect the love between our dear Dev and Sona.. In reality thats how it will be, especially when 2 completely different communities come together. Life is not a bollywood movie that shows what we want to see. 

Whatever happened, let it be. We wish the young couple a happy married life. Now, go make lots of good memories for you and us to cherish for years to come.

ps. The doctors have given 7% chance for Sonakshi to become a mother. 7% is PLENTY for a miracle to happen. When its time for God's precious child to come to earth, no-one can stop that from happening! So enjoy life, be happy and thankful for today 😄❤️😍